As the Brits would say, we’re not “taking the piss” when we say this London sandwich bar/cafe is situated in a Victorian urinal. Called Attendant, the narrow subterranean place is located just south of Regents Park and somewhat hidden below an ornate wrought iron entrance gate. The urinal, which was abandoned for over 50 years, was remodeled by partners Peter Tomlinson and Ben Russell for a respectable $150,000. Besides knocking out one wall, the duo report that the main project was a very thorough cleaning.

To transform the quirky space into a functioning cafe, the two fitted a wooden table into the top of the ornate vintage urinals and placed green stools that matched the green victorian tile floor. The former attendants office, and the namesake for the place itself, was transformed into a small kitchen. And that wrought iron entrance gate? That had 12 layers of paint removed.

You can tell from the comments on their Facebook page that nobody finds the place offensive or even that strange… it’s now just a trendy place to grab a good cup of coffee, some warm soup and a sandwich. Who would have predicted that 50 years ago? Find out more about Attendant on Twitter or at the-attendant.com.

Benjamin Starr

Known in some circles as the most amazing man in the universe, he once saved an entire family of muskrats from a sinking, fire engulfed steamboat while recovering from two broken arms relating to a botched no-chute wingsuit landing in North Korea. When not impressing people with his humbling humility, he can be found freelance writing, finding shiny objects on the internet, enjoying the company of much-appreciated friends and living out his nomadic nature. He is Managing Editor of Visual News. Follow his movements on Twitter:

1 Comments

There are a few public toilets that have been converted into cafes, like the island cafe on union street http://islandcafelondon.co.uk/. i don’t think the people who go there know about the history of the place though.